Hidden Under the Water

Sometimes I feel that I know Zagreb like the palm of my hand - every hidden cafe in forgotten yards covered with overgrown ivy, every forgotten staircase under the sky just perfect for a cigarette or two, and every hidden passage just waiting for my bike to rush through.

But this is an unfolded story, and as it usually occurs in unfolded stories, there must be a surprisingly and totally unexpected twist. Considering that we already have an overture for the twist, it would be unfair to delay revealing the twist.

It was a hot summer day. Not memorable by any detail, but hot enough to make one solid neighborly conversation when nothing is left to support the dialogue. During my time writing this post, the snow is silently but thoroughly sedimenting on my window, and this nostalgia for some summer damps and high temperatures is probably why you are reading this ode to one of the biggest hidden gems, only fifteen minutes away from the tram, that I didn’t have the patience to wait and visit on that hot summer day. So, the only logical explanation was to sit on a bike and ride to the unknown.

 Image credit: Lana Suša

The unknown took me to the bank of Sava river, one of the most underestimated places when someone speaks of Zagreb’s unforgettable landscape. My bike kept going east even though I have some other places to be. I thought, there must be some reason for this. And there was. Or, to be more precise, twelve of them.

As the concrete began to evenly parish, and goat roads started to take its place, I knew I found something special, something like Hyde Park in London and Central Park in New York. That’s how I felt at the time I realized that I am standing in a middle of a bird reserve which consists of twelve lakes. Yes, you heard me. Just in the heart of the biggest Croatian urban metropolis, the beauty of nature stands in its purest and finest form. Take that Hyde park! And if the Lake Poets were alive, there is not the slightest doubt in my mind that they would go seeking their inspiration in this very place.

 Video credit: Mario Mamić

This Eden was declared a ‘Pertinent landscape with a special zoological reservation’ because there were more than 186 bird species, many of them are endangered ones. This data alone, that I found out from the local fishermen napping in their chairs waiting for some starving carp to come along, impressed me in the manner that the next following step was leaving the bike at the ‘Fishermen’s dome’ and heading out to see all the twelve lakes. I asked fishermen to accompany me because I wanted to know more about this place just perfect for summer picnics. He told me that the biggest fish caught here had more than 57 kilos! Can you imagine that?

Not only that this oasis in the middle of the city nurtures small town fishermen culture, but it also has some monumental results to boast about! As we continued to stroll through the willows and bushes passing the bridges which connect all the lakes, I found out that this place really had its share of history. The ‘Fishermen’s dome’ along with the accompanying association was founded in 1976. Since then, a group of people in love with nature and animals watches over this little perfect piece of Zagreb.

Video credit: Andrija Recic

As my random field trip was coming to an end because the sun was going down, I said goodbye to the lakes, whose silent waves were approving my goodbye. I unlocked my bike and drove off from this green oasis. I couldn’t help but think why I didn’t find this place before. And one sentence continued to repeat in my mind: God, how I love Zagreb!

Header image credit: pixabay

Author: Lana Suša